Mario and friends are bringing the party to the Nintendo Switch with Super Mario Party, and we were able to play it ourselves at PAX West 2018. While we didn’t hit blocks to move around a board or steal stars from unwitting players, we did experience the new four-player cooperative mode called River Survival. In this mode, all players help row a boat downstream and avoid obstacles to make it to the end before time runs out. However, you’ll want to run into balloons along the river to activate minigames.
Minigames are the life of a Mario party, and working together in these minigames is the key since they are all cooperative in this mode as well. Whether you’re avoiding piranha plants while pushing a minecart, throwing boomerangs at Pokeys, or matching card suits in a memory test, you’ll be graded on performance. Depending on how well the team does, time is added to the clock for making it to the end of the river. Also, don’t forget to shake the Joycon at the end of each minigame for a high-five; it’ll tack on another three seconds to the clock.
Plenty of more minigames and the traditional board-style mode are all part of Super Mario Party, which is set to launch for Nintendo Switch on October 5, 2018.